8 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Clare this evening with 866 new cases confirmed nationwide.
Clare’s incidence rate of 136.3 per 100,000 people is the third lowest in the country and continues to fall.
52 deaths have been announced nationally, 33 of these deaths occurred in February, 12 occurred in January, 6 in December or earlier and 1 is still under investigation.
Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said: “We are cautiously optimistic about the epidemiological situation across the country. This positive momentum has been achieved through the dedication of people across the country in recent weeks. However, incidence and mortality rates are still very high, and the significant risk of community transmission of the virus remains, especially for those most vulnerable to COVID-19 infection. It is of vital importance that people continue to stay at home and to work from home where at all possible.”
Professor Karina Butler, Chair of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee said: “As of this week, we have administered 242,353 doses of COVID-19 vaccine. This is a wonderful achievement and I want to thank all our vaccine administration teams for their dedication and hard work. We hope that as our vaccination numbers go up, we can offer more protection those who are vaccinated and ultimately the wider population. But, until that time, all of us, including those of us who have received our COVID-19 vaccines, must maintain our adherence to all of the other public health measures like washing our hands and social distancing.”
Professor Philip Nolan, Chair of the NPHET Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group, said: “In the last week, the HSE has begun to test close contacts of confirmed cases. This is a positive move as it clearly shows that we are back in the containment phase of this pandemic. However, the positivity rates among household contacts is quite high, close to 30%. This is a timely reminder to us all to immediately isolate ourselves if we have any symptoms, to protect those most important to us. We should also continue to limit our social contacts. Do not visit another person’s household unless you are providing essential care.”
